The Veil

by Stuart Meczes

  I’ll make it up to her later…maybe take her to see the parade.

  I put my arm around her, and she tensed up for a moment before finally relaxing into my embrace, and resting her head against my shoulder. I kissed her on the cheek and she gave my knee a gentle squeeze.

  The wounded Gendrel appeared to have recovered enough to continue. He swam over – albeit slowly – and joined his fellow troupe in position. A moment later, the Oris burst back into play, but he made no serious attempt to take possession. Instead Blazer Carvel from the opposing troupe grabbed it and started passing it back and forth between himself and the other Blazer whilst avoiding the desperate knife slashes of a chasing Hunter who was playing piggy in the middle.

  The pair broke into the scoring zone and immediately the two Sentinels bore down on them, one of them smashing Carvel in between his eyes at the exact moment he was about to catch the Oris. The stunned Merman shrank backwards and the attacking Sentinel collected the Oris, throwing a long pass back into to play towards the struggling Gendrel. The Blazer grimaced as he was forced to stretch out and grab the disc.

  “A marvelous block and counter by Sentinel Willok!” cheered the commentator, his amplified voice barely managing to rise above the thundering cheers of the crowds.

  “Oh no, here comes Hunter Vadnir to cause some mischief!”

  The Hunter who had almost killed Gendrel came at the Blazer like a torpedo, and I drew in a sharp breath. The Blazer motioned to the right and feigned left, swimming past his opponent and narrowly avoiding a blade swipe. He flicked a short pass to Idrin, who sped up, beating his tail furiously as he rocketed straight towards one of the Merlake Sentinels. The two collided with a resounding crack that echoed around the stadium even though they were all underwater. The Sentinel sank downwards towards the bottom of the pool, and Idrin used his tail as a springboard, pushing upwards and away from his opponent. The other Sentinel closed in on him, but he wasn’t quick enough. A moment later the Oris came carving towards him, in a furious pass that made the Blazer’s wound seep tendrils of blood into the water. Idrin drove his head forward and nodded the disc into the maw of the statue.

  A thundering applause rang out around the stadium and even I had to clap. Some of the team stood up – including Grey, who almost spilt his drink in the process – and cheered along with the rest of the Aquadome. Grey put his fingers in his mouth and whistled, a sharp sound that pierced my ears. I glanced at Gabriella and was pleased to see that even she was nodding in approval.

  “A perfect display of a Kor’Istis set piece!” shouted Henrick. “Wonderful!”

  Gendrel nodded at his scoring teammate, clearly still too wounded to celebrate properly. I watched as the Fractured Isle Furies’ statue filled up even more with the dark red ink, making it look eerily like a bloodthirsty creature taking its fill. A moment later a long, low siren blared, signaling the end of the quarter. The crowd cheered and then dissolved into excited chatter as the Merfolk broke away from their positions, tending to their various wounds and congratulating each other. The display screen showed a timer counting down from 150 in Qi’lern.

  “How long did the commentator say each game was?” asked Gabriella.

  “About six minutes each quarter. With breaks, I’d say half an hour total, ” I replied.

  Gabriella nodded her head and said nothing more. She’s doing her best to take part, but she really isn’t enjoying this. I felt bad, but I didn’t know what to do. I glanced at the others, who were talking animatedly amongst themselves, Grey dipping his hand as he re-demonstrated Idrin’s tailshot. There’s nothing I can do.

  So instead, I took a long sip of my lemonade, savouring the cool freshness as it poured down my throat. There were few things more comforting and satisfying than a cool drink on a hot day. I sank the whole thing and then set the empty bottle back into the box. Not long afterwards the counter reached zero and I glanced up to see that all of the Merfolk were back in their respective positions. Another siren rang out and a cheer went up; a moment later the Oris came shooting out of the hole.

  That was when it all went very wrong.

  All of the Blazers went for the Oris, and the two Hunters came along with them, ready to attack.

  “And Blazer Rendai from the Magnificents takes the Oris!” called Henrick. “But here is Hunter Thalen, ready to make things difficult!”

  The Hunter stabbed out with his blade, but Hunter Vadnir spun around and smashed his tail into the Merman’s face, sending him sprawling backwards. Blazer Rendai thrust forward through the water, followed closely by his Blazer teammate. They broke towards the scoring zone and the two Sentinels darted towards the Oris-carrying Rendai. He performed a sharp underhand pass to his fellow Blazer, but Sentinel Wilok had doubled back, racing towards the receiving Blazer. As the two collided, they both fumbled at the Oris and it sailed past both of their grips, bouncing off the rear end of the pool and back into the scoring zone.

  The second Blazer and Sentinel charged after it, and at the same time so did Blazer Rendai and his opponent. The four collided, forming a large cluster of limbs and blades, each trying to grab at the floating Oris. Sentinel Wilok came down with his blade towards Rendai’s reaching hand, with the clear aim to stab his hand out of the way. But at the same time, the other Sentinel smashed against the Blazer, accidently forcing his head upwards. There was a sickening sound that was amplified by the underwater speakers, and a cold wave washed over me as on the large screen, I saw the blade nestled to the hilt in one of Blazer Rendai’s eye sockets.

  The crowd fell into a deathly silence and next to me Gabriella let out horrified moan. Even Grey looked shocked, his arms falling into his lap and his mouth wide open. A jet of dark blue poured out of the wound, and Sentinel Willok sank backwards, his webbed hand uncurling from the offending weapon, his face still with shock. The knife stayed where it was, the six-inch blade buried deep within Blazer Rendai’s brain. Alarmingly, what could only be described as excited chatter broke out among the crowd, as the rest of the Merlake Magnificents crowded around the Blazer. His head had lolled down to his chest and his tail dangled down below his slumped torso like a broken appendage.

  “Blazer Yumin, can you confirm that Blazer Rendai is dead?”

  The camera on the screen zoomed in to show a close-up up of the Blazer checking his teammate’s vitals. After a moment he looked up despondently and curled a cupped hand downwards.

  The commentator’s voice burst out so loud it made me jump. “What an unexpected turn! The first incident of accidental murder, which means that the Fractured Isle Furies are disqualified and the Merlake Magnificents are automatically through to the next stage of Kor’Istis!”

  The crowd broke into thunderous cheering.

  Are you kidding me?

  “I’m done.” Gabriella stood up and stormed away from the group, following the aisles and heading back down to the entrance.

  “Ella, wait up!” I called after her.

  “Alex, should we come too?” said Danny, clearly unsure how to handle the situation.

  “No, look, I’ll go after her. Just stay here or whatever. I’ll Biomote link you later.”

  I charged off after Gabriella, who was moving with pure anger through the crowds, barging those who were in her way very effectively out of her way. Shouts of indignation followed us as we moved down the crowds.

  “Gabriella, wait!” I insisted, trying to take her shoulder.

  “No. They let an innocent die, and they didn’t give a shit. They cheered. That wasn’t entertainment – that was bloodsport. What kind of fucked-up city is this?”

  “I know Ella, I know. It’s sick and disgusting. But where are you going?”

  “I can’t stay in this horrible stadium for one more second. I need fresh air, I need to think.”

  “Okay, I’ll come with you.”

  We made our way back down to the docking area and were cut off by the golden-haired Pixie and her entourage of Lightwardens.

 
“I do apologise, Guardians, but it is not usually permitted for citizens to leave the Aquadome when the Kor’Istis is taking place. If you needed to use the facilities then…”

  Gabriella glared daggers at the Pixie and she shrank backwards, her position replaced by the Lightwardens.

  “It’s okay,” I said, with my hands up in an appeasing gesture. “My Huntmaster isn’t feeling well. We just want to leave, that’s all.”

  The Lightwardens looked at each other and then one of them nodded. “I can escort you out, however, once you leave, you cannot return.”

  “I don’t want to return to this murder house,” hissed Gabriella under her breath.

  “Lead the way,” I said quickly.

  The guard gave us a lingering stare and then turned on his heel, shepherding us away from the cheering crowds and towards one of the doors that led back out onto the streets. I glanced over my shoulder and caught sight of the rest of Orion, all stood up and watching us from afar, unsure of what to do. I had no choice but to leave them to it as the guard unlatched one of the doors and it creaked open, allowing the fading remnants of setting sunlight to pour in around us.

  Once we were on the other side and the Lightwarden had firmly shut the door behind him, I turned to Gabriella, placing my arms on either side of her arms. “I’m so sorry Ella, I had no idea it was going to be like that in there,” I said. “Jesus, that was so messed up.”

  “I can’t believe they would allow something that cruel to happen, Alex. Merfolk are Fera – part of a neutral class. If they would allow them to kill each other in the name of sport, it makes me pretty damn nervous to think what they could be doing to a captive Umbra – someone from a class they see as their enemy.”

  She makes a good point.

  “Just tell me what you want to do. Do you want to go back to the Homesteads?”

  Gabriella shook her head.

  “Then what do you want to do?”

  She glanced up, her face full of determination. “Screw the rules. I want to find out where the hell they are keeping Iralia…now.”

  5

  Gabriella

  I broke away from Alex and paced down the torch-lined street, clenching and unclenching my hands. My breath escaped my lungs in ragged bursts and a sickening knot had twisted its way around my insides.

  Calm down, Gabriella. Calm down.

  Part of me knew that I was making a bad decision, but the other part of me didn’t care.

  First Iralia. Now this.

  I couldn’t wrap my head around what I’d witnessed at the Aquadome. Sure, Merfolk weren’t the most advanced species in Pandemonia, but they were still living, sentient creatures with hopes, fears and dreams. They had lives…they had families. Merfolk weren’t harmless by any stretch of the imagination – Guardians had killed thousands over the centuries – but as with all Pandemonians only ever the ones that had allowed themselves to become corrupted…no worse than a human who had gone too far off the rails to ever be righted. But those Mermen taking part in the water games, they were innocent. Like the commentator had said, each of them had been forced to brave most what I could only imagine were horrendous circumstances to reach Fenodara in hopes of saving their kin from the horrors of the Ageless War. All that hardship, only to then be pitted against others in a deadly spectator sport – a sport where in the first game, one of them had gruesomely lost their life to the sound of cheering crowds. In a city that is supposed to represent hope for the dying Luminar breeds.

  It was beyond cruel.

  One thing I knew for certain was that Pandemonia was having some kind of effect on me. I couldn’t explain why, but there was something about this world that had set me on edge from the moment we had arrived. It was as if I could feel its corruption, invisible and abstract, but still there, infecting me from a distance. I was a soldier; I worked on what I could see and understand. This world was making me feel strange and out of place and irrational.

  Out of control.

  I have to find Iralia and make sure she’s safe. It was the one thing I could take action on, the one way I could regain some modicum of control.

  “How are you going to find her?” asked Alex, speeding up until he was walking parallel with me.

  “I don’t know,” I replied, shaking my head. “That Lightwarden said she was being held in the White Keep, so let’s ask around.”

  We reached the end of the long street, which was fairly empty, save for a sizeable cluster of citizens standing at the far end, all staring up at a large screen fixed to one of the tall buildings. It was showing the events from inside the Aquadome in real-time. The body of the Blazer had been hauled out of the water, and several of the black robed people I’d seen were loading the carcass onto a stretcher, ready to be carried away. The faces of the crowd looked more irritated about the disruption to the games than any concern for the dead contender.

  “Excuse me,” I said to an Imp standing with his daughter at the back of the group. “Do you know where we might find the White Keep?”

  The man flinched, as if I had physically attacked him, and turned away from me without speaking. I placed a hand gently on his shoulder and asked again, but he just took his daughter’s hand and forced his way deeper into the crowd.

  “Does anyone know where the White Keep is?” I said louder, irritation flecking my words. There were murmurs from the crowd and a few of them turned to look at me, but none of them answered my question. Anger flared in my stomach and I went to ask again – impolitely – but Alex grabbed my arm and pulled me back.

  “Ella, Stop. Clearly you’re not going to get any answers from them.”

  “Clearly. But why the hell not?” I hissed, glaring past him at the large number of people who trying to act as if we didn’t even exist. I secretly cursed the fact that they weren’t human – if they were, I would have used my Charm to squeeze the answers out of them.

  He glanced over at them. “I don’t know.”

  “So what, we just give up then? Go back and I pretend I’m not worried about my teammate?”

  Alex placed his hands on my shoulders and I felt the warmth of our souls’ connection rush through my body like morphine, soothing my frayed nerves and making me relax. “I’m not saying that for a moment. But Fenodara has survived the Ageless War for a long time. It goes without saying that this place is like the city equivalent of Fort Knox. Everything is locked up tight…I’m guessing including the people. If we were going to get an answer out of someone, we would have already. So…we just have to find it for ourselves.”

  What Frey had said to me suddenly returned. “Freya said find the doors. Do you think that has something to do with where the White Keep is?”

  “I’m not sure. But there’s no harm in looking.”

  I nodded in agreement. “Let’s go.”

  We turned and walked past the citizens, me giving one final disgusted glance back at the screen. I could feel the inquisitive eyes of the crowd on my back as we turned the corner. Alex and I followed the path of the central canal for over a mile – each of the many connecting waterways now illuminated by glowing white orbs deep below the surface, like otherworldly versions of motorway cat’s eyes. There was a low rumble, and Alex and both glanced up to see a streamlined train carve through the sky in the distance like a silver knife, its many carriages hanging from a sleek rail system.

  We passed by groups of Fenodarians using their currency cards to purchase flamboyant masquerade masks and outfits from pop-up stalls. Dotted around the area were street singers playing instruments I had never seen and producing beautiful melodies I had never heard, in a variety of tongues. The blend of melancholy lyrics and instruments continued to bounce around my head as we continued to move down the street. We turned another corner and into another street that was buzzing with life. Hundreds of gaming stalls were packed on either side, their owners shouting at the top of their voices and inviting people to play. Excited citizens were bunched into small groups, trying their luck with th
em all. Children attempted to throw small versions of the Oris into small Cetus statues – just like the ones in the Aquadome – or shoot laser guns at moving cutouts of Umbra creatures. The area was filled with the blended clinks and whistles of the different attractions as citizens tried their best to win credits for their currency cards or one of several prizes displayed proudly at the back of the stalls. Fenodarians appeared from every connecting street, and droves climbed out of Passageboats in a nearby docking area. Overhead dozens of Lightwardens stood watch on balconies attached to the surrounding buildings, their gunpikes raised and ready to be used.

  Alex and I excused our way through the narrow street, ignoring the hawking calls of all the stall owners offering us a free first try at their game. As we moved forward, the area widened up into the open park area I had seen on the Valoon ride in. It had been completely transformed from before. There were countless stalls selling countless more trinkets – such as charm bracelets, tall candles with intricate designs, and what looked like wine decanters that had water of various colours swirling around inside of them. There were also several food and drinks stalls, selling unidentifiable meats on skewers; their aroma hit my nose in a dizzying array of rich and smoky scents.

  Everywhere we looked, there were incredible water displays shooting up from large fountains and cascading down walls, and beautiful hanging lanterns adorned by flowers bursting with rich colours. It was like the other side of the coin to Misfortune Market – one of the recent missions we’d gone on. Everything there had been garish and grotesque, colourful and overstated to the point of sickly. Instead, here everything around us was delicate and created with the care of those who truly loved what the celebration represented.

  Several families were sitting on benches and relaxing, whilst their children played with the various toys they had won at the stalls. A band in one corner was playing a modern-sounding song, a Pixie covered with tattoos and a half-shaved head – who looked like she would fit right into the indie scene back home – was singing her heart out into the microphone.